Rules and ethics
Part of Private social messages count as electronic mail, and other UK rules for B2B sellers
Checking B2B social selling content against advertising rules before release
Check B2B social-selling advertising in England for scope, disclosure, evidence, comparisons, endorsements, data use and live corrections before release.
Use this checklist before releasing a paid post, seller promotion, comparison, case study or commissioned endorsement aimed at English business audiences. B2B social selling advertising rules draw on UK legislation and the CAP Code. The Business Protection from Misleading Marketing Regulations apply to business-to-business advertising only, not to consumer audiences.
They can change with the audience, product and placement, so the completed checklist needs qualified review rather than a blanket approval.
What to take away
- A completed checklist needs qualified review because advertising rules change with audience, product and placement.
- The CAP Code requires marketing communications to be obviously identifiable and prohibits disguising commercial intent.
- Objective claims need documentary evidence before publication, and limitations should sit beside the claim.
- Direct marketing using personal information must meet fairness, transparency and lawful basis requirements.
Establish scope and audience
- Record where the marketer is based, where the content appears and whom it targets.
- Decide whether the material promotes the supply of a product or service, even if it is posted from a personal account.
- Identify any consumer or mixed audience instead of relying on the campaign's B2B name.
- Check specialist rules for the advertised sector.
The CAP Code's current scope page includes paid-for online ads and specified marketing in a business's own non-paid online space. It also gives criteria for cross-border platforms.
Make the advertiser apparent
- State the commercial identity before the audience interprets the message.
- Mark paid, controlled or incentivised material clearly where context is insufficient.
- Do not rely on a profile biography, distant hashtag or later slide to repair an unclear opening.
- Capture gifts, commission, employment, ownership and agency relationships in the brief.
CAP Code section 2 requires marketing communications to be obviously identifiable and prohibits disguising commercial intent. The CMA's brand endorsement guidance tells businesses to brief creators, check published content and correct inadequate labels. Its consumer-law context should not be presented as a universal B2B ruling.
Non-compliant: a post that says 'Great new service from Acme' with no label, or the label hidden behind a 'more' link. Compliant: 'Ad - Acme paid for this post. Great new service from Acme.' The label appears before the promotional message.
The ASA enforces the CAP Code and accepts complaints about non-broadcast ads. The CMA enforces consumer protection law and can act on misleading endorsements. The ICO enforces data protection law and accepts complaints about direct marketing.
For example, use 'Ad: paid partnership with [brand]' at the start of the post.
Test every claim against evidence
- List objective statements, implied messages, comparisons and visual claims.
- Attach dated documents that support the likely audience interpretation.
- Narrow results to the measured customer, period and conditions.
- Keep limitations beside the claim and remove unsupported superlatives.
Section 3 of the CAP Code requires documentary evidence before publication for objective claims capable of substantiation. For advertising to traders, GOV.UK identifies the Business Protection from Misleading Marketing Regulations and highlights accuracy and conditions on competitor comparisons.
For a claim limitation, write 'Based on [number] customers in [period]; individual results vary.'
Review data and delivery
- Record whether targeting uses personal information, uploaded lists or profiling.
- Confirm the lawful basis, transparency route, preference screening and objection process.
- Check the exact audience and exclusions configured in the platform.
- Name the publisher, approver and person able to pause distribution.
The ICO's planning guidance for direct marketing covers targeted social-media use and platform advertising. It asks organisations to assess fairness, transparency, lawful basis and reasonable expectations.
Preserve the claim lifecycle
- Give each material claim an evidence owner and review date.
- Keep the approved asset and a record of who changed it.
- Link case-study wording to the customer's permission and measured scope.
- Set a trigger for withdrawing time-limited, superseded or contradicted statements.
A platform preview is not the final evidence record. Capture what the intended audience could actually see, including cropped images, truncated captions and the destination page. If a seller adds a comment that strengthens the original promise, send that wording through the same substantiation check.
Sign and monitor
Record approval for the final words, image, link, form and settings. After release, retain the version, evidence and date. Correct or withdraw material when a claim changes, a disclosure fails or targeting departs from the approved audience. Recheck the live CAP Code and regulator guidance on publication day; a completed old checklist is not permission for a changed advertisement.
Common questions
What must be done before publishing objective claims?
Section 3 of the CAP Code requires documentary evidence before publication for objective claims capable of substantiation. For advertising to traders, GOV.UK identifies the Business Protection from Misleading Marketing Regulations and highlights accuracy and conditions on competitor comparisons.
How should personal information in targeting be handled?
The ICO's planning guidance for direct marketing covers targeted social-media use and platform advertising. It asks organisations to assess fairness, transparency, lawful basis and reasonable expectations. The checklist also requires recording whether targeting uses personal information, uploaded lists or profiling, and confirming the lawful basis, transparency route, preference screening and objection process.
What should be captured as the final evidence record?
Capture what the intended audience could actually see, including cropped images, truncated captions and the destination page. If a seller adds a comment that strengthens the original promise, send that wording through the same substantiation check.
